Method of closing openings in rubber products



May 4 1926. 1,583,571

` R. s. BURDETTE mamon or cnosnw orsumss 1N RUBBER mowers v original Filed aan. e. 1922 Hal ummm

All Ellllllll "Il l lll HIII INVENTOR- f//if .5. wwf/vz BY .DA-fg r" L M. ATro NEY vliatekexnted May 4,1926.

f UNITED stares RICHARD s. BURDETTE, or AKRON, oiro, assrenon To rnneconnan "sinn ann RUBBER COMPANY, or Annen, Cirio, A conrona'rion Cn omc.

METHOD or CLOSING ornnnes in RUBBER PRODUCTS. f

. Original application led January 6, 1922, Serial No. 527,350. :Divide-d and A Serial No. 2,293.

This invention relates to vulcanizingf devices for use in repairing' articles that ens` -body rubber, or rubber composition, for instance, such as tires, hoseyor other-.articles possessing similar structural characteristics.

In'order to exemplify its use and construction, I have'elected to illustrate and; describe its applicability'in the art'of re-l Y pairing punctures in tire 4casingsrfor Which operation it is specilieally adapted.

Itis eoininon practice, in 'repairing puncytures in tire casings, to `vulc'anize a plug,4 or insert, that is formed of rubber componr sii'ion in the oriiice constituting' the puncture..y It is, however, extremely difficult, if not impossible under present practices, to

distribute the heat throughout Vthe plug' orL insert in such manner that the Walls ofthe-l orifice, which, of course, are already vulcanized, are not overcured duringvulcanization of the plug', as Will be readily understood Without further explanation.

The present inventionhas'A been designed Y With the foregoing problem `in view and, therefore, contemplates as a primary consideration, the provision of a device adapted to insure proper vulcanization of a plug or insert Without injuriously affecting the surroundingr of the Wall of the orifice by overvulcanization.

It is also an object of the invention to so apply the heat thatV it Will be diffused uniformly throughout that area of the plug adjacent the Wall of the 4orifice and to secure a consistent expansion,particularly, of this area against the Walls of the orifice, to thereby attain a proper adhesion between the plug and the Wall during vulcanization.

Other objects, such 'as ease of operation, and simplicity of construction, yWill appear when the following description is read in conjunction With the accompanying-*drawings in which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary sectional view of this application filed` January teive'a conventional form of plug 3, and 1 invention 'in side, elevation and-its applical e designates, as a Whole, my improved' device for vulcanizing the plus; in the casing'.

'Ihe device el, comprises, generally speaking, a head portion 5 and a shank or hollow l nippleportion 6, andv is designed to be positioned relative to the plusv 3 in substantially the manner illustrated int-he drawings, that vis to say, Withtheshanl or nipple portion 6 inserted ingthe plug?) in a position axially thereof. ,To permitv of its being,y so "positione'd, the end of the shank or nipple` 6 is tapered or rounded asat '7. In actual practice, the nipple may be positioned in the'plug` 9* inserted in thepuncture orifice.. `The device 5 may be formed in any suitable manner but ypreferably itcoinprises aadisl--lilter flange 8 carrying the aforesaid shank or 'nipple (i.

o either before or after the plug: hasbeen which is capped by a similarly `shaped plate 9 removably fastenedtheretothrough the medium of screws` 10. 'Iheflang'e 8 and the signed to register When the deviceis assembled 'to form a bore 12 that is in communication 'with' asimilar bore 13. inthe hollow shankr or nipple 6. l l f The bore 13 in the aforesaid nipple 6 is provided for the purpose of introducingl a vulcal'iizing medium' into the nipple, such as steamorhot Water, or any other suitable medium. I prefer, in this instance, to utilize vsteam andto introduce it Within the nipple .plate 9 areV respectively provided VWithdiafr metrical'channels 10ar and l1 Which'are detapered, as will be seen by reference to Fig. 2. Any suitable means for connecting the nozzle to a source of steam supply may be provided, such, for insta-nce, as the threaded portion than the bore in order that the steam may exhaust into the free portion of the bore provided by the channels 10v and 11 and from there Vinto the atmosphere. `Preferably, although not necessarily, l interp'ose a Washer 19 between the head member 5 and the casing` in order to insulate them one from the other. AAlso, l prefer to utilize a Washer 20 between the members 8 and 9 of the head member 4.

The operation of the device, it is believed, Will be obvious from the fore-doing"V and it Will also be apparent that' by a tting the continuous stream of the heatingiluid into the aforesaid nipple, that an ideal medium is provided in the practice of this invention `for uniformly distributing the heat necessary to vulcanization throughout'the plug. After the vulcanization operation has been completed, the device may be readily With drawn-from the plug' and the opening left the nipple 6 may be filled in any suitable manner such, for instance, as by tire putty, cement, or the like.

TWilhile I have described my invention in detail and, therefore, utilized certain' speciiic language, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is merely illustrative and is not designed in any Way to limit the scope or spirit of the invention unless suchr li1nitations are indicated in the claims appended hereto.

llhatl claim is: v

1. rlhe method of closing an opening in a rubber product which comprises inserting a vulcanizable medium Within the opening, and heating` the vulcanizable medium from the interior thereof. i

2. rlhe method of closing an opening in a rubber product which comprises inserting` a rubber plug` Within said'opening, and -'applying heating means internally of said plug. A f f 3. rilhe methodof closing an opening in a rubber product which comprises inserting a rubber plug Within said opening, causing,` said plug` to firmly engage the Walls of Said opening, and so heating the plug,` that heat is difi'used from the interior central'portion of the latter toward the engaging -walls of the opening.

'.l`lie method of closing an opening in a rubber product Which comprises 'inserting a rubber plug within Asaid opening, insert- .ing a heating element Within'the plug, and

en rgizing said element. Y

'.llhe method of closing an opening` in a rubber product which comprises inserting a rubber plug within said opening', and heat ing said plug from the central portion thereof.

G. 'lne method of closing` an opening in a rubber product which comprises inserting a rubber plugl Within said opening, and heating said plug so as to cause the 'temperature to be uniform'over the entire surface of the plug in engagement with the Walls of the opening'.

ln Witness whereof l have hereunto Vso 

